Refrigerating machine



April 7, M 1% n. E. mm@

REFRIGERATING MACHINE Filed 001;. ll, 1954 Inventor; @alpin EIND His A tormeg Patented Apr. 1.7,l 1936 UNITED vs'mrizs BEFBIGERATING MACHINE Ralph E. King, Fort Wayne, Ind., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York.

Application October 1l, 1934,- Serial No. 747,879

p f a claims.

My invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and more particularly to refrigerating apparatus adapted for household or domestic use.

In vhousehold refrigerators it is common practice to provide a cabinet having a cooling compartment and a machinery compartment. A compressor,.a motor for driving the same and a condenser areusually located in the machinery compartment, a fan being provided to circulate air therethrough. The cooling air which is circulated through the machinery compartment by the fan often contains dirt and other 'foreign matter which collects on the machinery contained in the machinery compartment and particularly on the heat radiating surfaces of the condenser. 'I'he collection of ldirt is not only unsanitary, but if it is allowed to accumulate on the surfaces of the condenser member, it will very materially decrease its eiiiciency, as it reduces the air iiow through the condenser and acts as a heat insulator on the heat dissipating It is an object of my invention to provide a novel arrangement of parts in a refrigerator of the type described in which the cooling air is circulated through the machinery compartment so as to utilize the same most effectively for cooling the condenser and other portions of the l machinery therein, and in which the surface of the condenser is easily accessible for cleaning l purposes.

It is a fiu'ther object of my invention to provide a refrigerator of the type described in which the air inlet of the machinery compartment is located near the floor and in the base of the machinery compartment, and in which dirt and other foreign matter is prevented from entering the space beneath the refrigerator cabinet.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds and the features` of novelty which characterize my invention will be pointed out with.' particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this specification.

For a better understanding of my invention reference may be had to the accompanying drawing in which the single gure is a side view, partly in section, of a domestic refrigerator embodying my invention.

Referring to the drawing, I have shown a refrigerator comprising a cooling chamber or food compartment Ill which is cooled by a suitable cooling unit Il, the latter being supplied with refrigerant from the apparatus containedv in a machinery compartment I2. In the form of my invention shown in the drawing, the machinery compartment I2 is located below the cooling compartment I0 and contains a compressor unit I4 which is driven by an electric 5 motor I5 through'a'suitable belt connection I6. An air cooled condenser I1 having a plurality of vertical closely spaced fins lla, is mounted near the front of the machinery compartment I2. A fan I8 is located in the machinery com? partment for circulating cooling air therethrough and is driven directly by the electric motor I5. An air inlet I9 is provided for the machinery compartment I2 preferably in the forward portion of a base 20 on which the cabinet is supported. This base includes a. rectangular frame 20a and legs 20h made of angle iron, and a mop-board 2| completely surrounding the frame of the base which is welded to the angle iron frame and the legs. This mop- 20 board is provided with an offset portion, or recess, 22 in the front thereof, which provides a convenient toe space for persons who are standing in front of the refrigerator. Since the mop board 2l surrounds the entrance to the air 'inlet I9 on three sides, it effectively prevents dirt or other material from the floor surface entering the space under the refrigerator cabinet which might otherwise be carried there by the movement of the cooling air across the floor or 30 when the floor. is mopped or dusted. A removable panel 23 is provided for closing the front of the machinery compartment I2. Easy access may be had to the face of the condenser I1 through the front of the compartment I2 upon removal of panel 23.

In the operation of the refrigeration apparatus illustrated in the drawing, refrigerant is compressed in the compressor I4 and passes through conduit 24 to the condenser I1, where 40 the refrigerant is condensed into a liquid and then collected in a receiver 25.` From the receiver 25 the liquefied refrigerant passes through a conduit 26 to the cooling unit or evaporator II. After the refrigerant is vex- 5 panded in the evaporator Il by the absorption ,of heat in the cooling compartment the vaporized refrigerant returns through conduit 21 to the compressor I4 after which the cycle is continued.

The fan I8 draws cooling air through the inlet I9 into the machinery compartment I2 and through the air cooled condenser I1. After passing through the fan I8 the air is circulated across the compressor Il and motor l5 and is 55 discharged at 28 through the open rear side of the machinery compartment. Because the n type condenser Il presents a relatively ilat face having a large number of small openings made up of closely spaced radiating fins any dirt or other foreign matter contained in the cooling air entering the machinery compartment I2 will collect on this face of the condenser I'I. In this way the condenser II acts as a strainer for dust and other particles entering the machinery compartment and to some extent prevents such matter from being deposited on the other apparatus in the compartment. The front surface of the condenser II is easily accessible for cleaning purposes through the removable panel 23, as pointed out above. Hence, it is clear that the operator may remove the panel 23 and clean the face of the condenser I1 with an ordinary cleaning brush or the like, thus removing in one operation, practically all of the dirt and other material which may have been carried into the machinery compartment I2 by the cooling air circulating therethrough. Also the condenser can be conveniently maintained in enicient condition by the removal of such foreign mattei' from its surfaces. Although the air inlet I9 is located in the base of the machinery compartment I2, the mop-board 2| eifectually prevents the deposit of dirt beneath the refrigerator cabinet. As Will be seen from the drawing, the removable panel 23 is imperforate and the front and side walls of the refrigerator thus present smooth surfaces which may be easily cleaned by wiping them with a damp cloth or the like.

While I have shown a particular embodiment of my invention in connection with a compression refrigerating machine, I do not desire my invention to be limited to the particular construction shown and described,`and I intend in the appended claims to cover all modiiications Within the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A refrigerator cabinet having a cooling compartment and a machinery compartment therebeneath, a mop-board surrounding the base of said refrigerator and having an offset portion in the front thereof, an air-cooled condenser and a motor and compressor unit mounted in said machinery compartment, an air inlet in the floor of said machinery compartment in front of said offset portion of said mop-board, an air outlet in the rear portion of said machinery compartment, and means for drawing cooling air from said inlet through said condenser and over said compressor unit in series and discharging the same through said outlet.

2. A refrigerator cabinet having a cooling compartment and a machinery compartment therein beneath said cooling compartment, a base for said refrigerator cabinet having an imperforate mop-board extending entirely about the front and sides thereof and closing a space between the bottom of said machinery compartment and the surface on which said base is supported, and a recess in a Wall of said base Aproviding a passage for admitting cooling air to an inlet in said machinery compartment.

3. A refrigerator cabinet having a cooling compartment and a machinery compartment therebeneath provided with an opening in the front wall thereof, a mop-board surrounding the base of said refrigerator and having an offset portion in the front'thereof, a removable imperforate panel covering said opening, a vertical air-cooled condenser of the fin type mounted in said machinery compartment in parallel spaced relationship with said opening the face of said condenser being accessible through said opening for cleaning purposes, a motor-driven compressor unit supported in the rear of said condenser, an air inlet in the floor of isaid machinery compartment in front of said oiset portion of the mop-board, an air outlet in the rear Wall of said machinery compartment, and a fan mounted between said condenser and compressor unit for circulating air from said inlet through said condenser and over said compressor unit in series and discharging the same through said outlet.

RALPH E. KING, 

